Residential Units in DOB Permit Applications

After a slow January, new construction permit applications submitted to the Department of Buildings rebounded last month, with 1,937 residential units included in residential applications of at least 15,000 square feet, a TRData analysis found. January’s drop in both new permit applications and new permits issued prompted many observers to say that the expiration of the 421-a developer tax cut was already having a noticeable affect on new development plans. Only 824 proposed units were sent to the DOB in new applications for projects of at least 15,000 square feet in January, the lowest month for applications of any month during the previous year. Likewise, just 453 new residential units were approved and issued construction permits from any size category during that month, as TRD previously reported.

In February at least, new apartment applications climbed back to within 300 units of the 12 month average of 2,217. The largest project, a 300-unit rental set for the Bronx, is part of the Melrose Commons affordable housing redevelopment which is spearheaded by the city government.

The Bronx counted the most residential units of any of the five boroughs with 799 qualifying units in February. Queens, Brooklyn and Manhattan followed with 519, 443, and 176 units respectively. There were no new residential projects of at least 15,000 square feet in Staten Island submitted to the DOB during the month. — Will Parker